Do you believe?
by loob88
Summary: When Coraline is happy in her new home, there comes a turn for the worse. The Beldam makes an appearance, as a button mom in normal. Coraline plays along, but something fishy is going on...
1. My Homecoming

I woke up to find my new pet, Adrian the parrot, digging his claws into my neck.

"Breakfast time!" He announced. "Breakfast time", "dinner time" and "tea time" were the only phrases he knew. Oh, and "wake up, snoozer" was another. I brushed him away from me and groggily poured two cups of birdseed into his feeder (or trough as I liked to call it).

"Coraline!" Mom called from downstairs. I scuttled down the steps and into the kitchen, where mom had wrapped three birthday presents for me. Poking the first, I assumed it would be one of those crummy grow your own fairy garden sets that mom got me every year. Carefully, I undid the wrapper and found myself staring at a box labelled "Mrs. Potter's sewing kit for young ladies". I jumped back. I was never keen on sewing or buttons after what the Beldam tried to do to my eyes years ago. I opened the kit and found three pairs of different coloured buttons. One pair was orange, one pair was blue and the other was black. _Just like the colours the Beldam was going to sew onto my eyes. _I took a in a deep breath and told myself the Beldam wasn't after me. After all, Mom and Dad had moved me to a much brighter town. There were no locked doors in the house that I didn't know about, and nothing dodgy. There was a knock on the door and I answered it. It was Savannah, my best friend.

"Hey Coraline. Happy birthday. I brought you a sewing kit too. Seems like I was at the same store, 'cause I got you the same thing as your mom did." Savannah smiled. I could feel something strange stuck to the bottom of the box. I peeled it off and examined it. It was an orange post-it note.

"Dearest Coraline, I still love you. Why won't you come back home? You have me, Wybie, your father, and Savannah (who we managed to get for you, honey). You don't need those cruel, selfish parents. Meet me at the rabbit hole beach tonight. I want you back, sweetie pie. Your dad wants you back. Wybie wants you back. Savannah wants you back. We all miss you. Lots of Love, Mommy." I read to myself and dropped the note in horror. As soon as I did, it faded away.

That night, I dragged Savannah with me to Rabbit Hole Beach. My mother wasn't there.

"Go back home, Savannah. It's pointless you being here when I meet _HER._" I told her.

"Who's _HER?_" Savannah asked. I just shooed her away and waited. A familiar figure was walking across the beach towards me. She was just like my mom, only with black buttons on her eyes.

"Oh, my Coraline!" She giggled, giving me a huge hug. I pushed her away, terrified.

"I thought I killed you...I killed you...didn't I?" I gasped. She shook her head.

"Us button-eyes have two personalities, silly! You killed my evil personality. Now come on! There's no time to waste. Your father has that beef stew on. I invited Wybie and Savannah over for you. Savannah was sewn especially for you. I even gave her something Wybie hasn't got. Savannah can speak. Oh, I'll just drag you along with me." She smiled, pulling me into a sinkhole by the arm.

I remembered where I was now; the kitchen of the Other World, where, when I first came, dad cooked chicken casserole. It was better than my dad's by far.

"Honey, look who came back home!" Button Mom smiled at my dad, who swivelled round to face me. His face was creased, and he looked a lot older than when I first met him.

"Hey, bunny! How are you? Wybie and that Savannah girl are in your room. They're playing." Button Dad smiled, giving me a huge hug. I returned it, but with caution.

"Don't worry, sweetie. I killed the evil personalities in every other button-eye. I couldn't kill my own, could I?" Button Mom winked at me as I trudged up the red stairs and into my room, where Wybie and Savannah were sitting on the floor. Wybie shouted a muffled cry of joy and Savannah squealed. They were both forcing me to sit down and have a tea party with them. Wybie tried to pour some tea into his mouth, but it soaked into his face. Hannah sipped hers and offered me some. I drank it gratefully. My parents had left my room the same as it was when I left the Other World, which I was glad of. The house in the Other World was the same as my old one, which was nice. I was too scared to open the front door in this house, in case it took me back home.

"Dinner's ready!" Button Dad called. I raced downstairs as he put a ladleful of Beef Stew into my bowl. I ate it hungrily and licked the remainder from my lips.


	2. I wish

I ate the rest of my tea and went to bed. It felt softer than the bed at my new home. It reminded me I missed life at the Pink Palace Apartments. I settled down, and fell asleep...

The next morning, I woke up in my bed at my new home.

"Breakfast time!" Came the cry from Adrian's cage. I tipped some birdseed in and sighed. It was back to my old boring life at Ashbrook apartments. I could hear mom padding upstairs.

"Coraline? Are you home?" Mom called.

"Yeah Mom." I replied.

"You went missing last night!I was so upset. I asked the Ashbrook police to start a search party, but they said that because you hadn't been gone 24 hours, they couldn't go and find you. I'm so glad you returned." Mom smiled. I walked downstairs, ate my breakfast, and headed outside. I was going back to the place I loved.

Waking across the beach, it didn't take me long to find Button Mom. She ran up to me, arms outstretched again. I looked at her, a little baffled. She had changed, again, to when I last saw her. Instead of wearing a striped cardigan and leggings, she was wearing a t-shirt and jeans. _Just like the clothes Mom wore on a Saturday._

"Mr. Bobinsky invited us to dinner tonight, Coraline. He has something special for you." Button Mom giggled. I shuddered and hoped it wasn't the jumping mice. I remembered the cat killing one and turning it into a rat. Button Mom grabbed my arm and pulled me back into the sinkhole. This time, I wasn't in the kitchen. I had landed just outside the front door of my house in the Other World, where Button Dad, Wybie and Savannah were standing.

"Come on, Coraline! Mr. Bobinsky is waiting!" Button Mom, Button Dad and Savannah called. I grabbed Wybie's hand and we walked down the path, towards Mr. Bobinsky's. He flung open the door and extended a hand for me to shake.

"Caroline! It has been many years since I saw you. I left you on a hanger of cliffs. The mices, they wait for you. They impatient creatures. I have dinner ready. For you guys, I make spaghetti bolognese. Eat up!" Mr. Bobinsky swept us inside and onto a large table. I slurped up the spaghetti bolognese and stayed stock-still. Mr. Bobinsky grabbed my arm and Savannah's, pulling us into a dark, cool room that was dimly lit. Suddenly, a large light flicked onto a cardboard box, where four mice stood, paws in paws. Slowly, Mr. Bobinsky played a tune on the piano, and they began to waltz. I gasped in amazement. The mice weren't usually this talented. Just then, there was a call from downstairs.

"Coraline! Savannah! We've gotta go home! It's bed time!" Button Dad and Button Mom called. I ran downstairs, pulling Savannah by the arm as my Button Parents and Wybie walked out of the door. We followed them, and I slipped into bed. I was so tired...


End file.
